Emergency Planning, Response and Resilience

2023/24 Part-time Postgraduate Short course and CPD

Faculty:

Faculty of Computing, Engineering and the Built Environment

School:

Belfast School of Architecture and the Built Environment

eLearning:

This course is taught online so you can study where you want, when you want.

Credit points:

20

Start date:

28 September 2023

For full instructions on how to apply for short courses, please contact the Centre for Flexible and Continuing Education - FlexEd@ulster.ac.uk

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

We are passionate about sharing with our students the vital role they each have now and as future professionals in promoting a sustainable future for all. We believe that sustainability is not the domain of one discipline or profession. It is the responsibility of all disciplines, professions, organisations and individuals.

That is why on each of our courses within the Belfast School of Architecture and the Built Environment you will learn about the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the contribution you can make now, and as a graduate in the Built Environment.

Read the course details below to find out more.

Overview

This course provides core knowledge and understanding of the key concepts and lifecycle stages of emergency planning, response and resilience.

Summary

Participants completing this course will understand the strategic, moral and humanitarian motivation for emergency planning. They will understand the complexities, core principles, mechanisms and partnerships involved and the essential role of crisis communication. Participants will develop key skills in strategic planning and policy to deliver interventions successfully that deal with emergencies which threaten the lives, livelihoods or well-being of citizens across the world.

This course can be taken individually or combined over a period of time towards a Postgraduate Certificate of Professional Development.

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About this course

In this section

  1. About
  2. Linked programmes
  3. Assessment
  4. Attendance
  5. Entry requirements
  6. English Language Requirements
  7. Start dates
  8. Teaching, Learning and Assessment
  9. Academic profile

About

By nature the discipline of emergency planning and resilience is extensive. The course by necessity will focus on the over-arching core themes and strategic aspects and how these impact on policy and intervention strategies. It also focuses on the multi-disciplinary nature of emergency preparedness and response and the importance of partnership working. Participants will study the systems, skills and support networks needed to plan for, respond to and recover from emergencies while also considering the moral, humanitarian and economic motivation which underpins the discipline. Indicative content will include:

The need for preparedness and response and the fundamental principles underpinning our actions and the work of exemplar organisations such as:

The International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent:

  • humanity
  • impartiality
  • neutrality
  • universality

Resilience and the significance to sustainable communities:

  • state
  • organisational
  • physical/engineering
  • community, individual

Business continuity and the maintenance of essential services for the protection of public health and preservation of life.

Emergency Planning lifecycle and the roles of different organisations and responders:

  • preparation
  • response
  • recovery

The core importance, principles and techniques of Crisis Communication and the role of modern communication opportunities.

Disaster capitalism.

Case studies for context to underpin the teaching.

Linked programmes

MSc Global Strategy in Environmental Health and Sustainability, PgCertPD Professional Development

Assessment

100% Coursework

(1) Report (25%)

Participants are required to submit a reflective 1000 word report based on their participation in and contribution to a simulation and role play exercise. This will typically, but not exclusively, include:

  • Critical appraisal of team cohesion, communication and achievement of desired outcomes.
  • Commentary on lessons learned and areas for improvement.

(2) Report (75%)

Prepare a draft business continuity plan, or emergency response plan, or a crisis communication strategy for the organisation in which participants are employed, or an organisation to which they have links in a voluntary capacity, or another identified organisation within the community, or a fictitious organisation where a participant does not have access to an appropriate organisation, or chooses not to use this option.

The plan or strategy must be suitably justified and underpinned with relevant critical analysis and literature in the form of a supporting report (3000 words).

Attendance

This course is delivered fully online for 12 weeks in Semester 1, on Thursdays from 09:15am – 12:15pm, starting 28 September 2023, with no on campus attendance requirements.

Entry requirements

Any undergraduate degree.

If you do not have an undergraduate degree and are interested in this course, please contact us.

English Language Requirements

Applicants whose first language is not English must meet the minimum English entrance requirements of the University and will need to provide recent evidence of this (certified within the last two years).

Most of our courses require a minimum English level of IELTS 6.0 or equivalent, with no band score under 5.5. Trinity ISE: Pass at level III also meets this requirement.

Additional information on English language requirements for admission at Ulster University, is available at - www.ulster.ac.uk/global/apply/english-language-requirements


Visas and Immigration

International applicants will also require a short-term study visa.

Further information is available at - www.ulster.ac.uk/international/visa-immigration

Start dates

  • 28 September 2023

Teaching, Learning and Assessment

Teaching, learning and assessment

The content for each course is summarised on the relevant course page, along with an overview of the modules that make up the course.

Each course is approved by the University and meets the expectations of:

Attendance and Independent Study

As part of your course induction, you will be provided with details of the organisation and management of the course, including attendance and assessment requirements - usually in the form of a timetable. For full-time courses, the precise timetable for each semester is not confirmed until close to the start date and may be subject to some change in the early weeks as all courses settle into their planned patterns. For part-time courses which require attendance on particular days and times, an expectation of the days and periods of attendance will be included in the letter of offer. A course handbook is also made available.

Courses comprise modules for which the notional effort involved is indicated by its credit rating. Each credit point represents 10 hours of student effort. Undergraduate courses typically contain 10, 20, or 40 credit modules (more usually 20) and postgraduate courses typically 15 or 30 credit modules.

The normal study load expectation for an undergraduate full-time course of study in the standard academic year is 120 credit points. This amounts to around 36-42 hours of expected teaching and learning per week, inclusive of attendance requirements for lectures, seminars, tutorials, practical work, fieldwork or other scheduled classes, private study, and assessment. Teaching and learning activities will be in-person and/or online depending on the nature of the course. Part-time study load is the same as full-time pro-rata, with each credit point representing 10 hours of student effort.

Postgraduate Master’s courses typically comprise 180 credits, taken in three semesters when studied full-time. A Postgraduate Certificate (PGCert) comprises 60 credits and can usually be completed on a part-time basis in one year. A 120-credit Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) can usually be completed on a part-time basis in two years.

Class contact times vary by course and type of module. Typically, for a module predominantly delivered through lectures you can expect at least 3 contact hours per week (lectures/seminars/tutorials). Laboratory classes often require a greater intensity of attendance in blocks. Some modules may combine lecture and laboratory. The precise model will depend on the course you apply for and may be subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. Prospective students will be consulted about any significant changes.

Assessment

Assessment methods vary and are defined explicitly in each module. Assessment can be a combination of examination and coursework but may also be only one of these methods. Assessment is designed to assess your achievement of the module’s stated learning outcomes.  You can expect to receive timely feedback on all coursework assessments. This feedback may be issued individually and/or issued to the group and you will be encouraged to act on this feedback for your own development.

Coursework can take many forms, for example: essay, report, seminar paper, test, presentation, dissertation, design, artefacts, portfolio, journal, group work. The precise form and combination of assessment will depend on the course you apply for and the module. Details will be made available in advance through induction, the course handbook, the module specification, the assessment timetable and the assessment brief. The details are subject to change from year to year for quality or enhancement reasons. You will be consulted about any significant changes.

Normally, a module will have 4 learning outcomes, and no more than 2 items of assessment. An item of assessment can comprise more than one task. The notional workload and the equivalence across types of assessment is standardised. The module pass mark for undergraduate courses is 40%. The module pass mark for postgraduate courses is 50%.

Calculation of the Final Award

The class of Honours awarded in Bachelor’s degrees is usually determined by calculation of an aggregate mark based on performance across the modules at Levels 5 and 6, (which correspond to the second and third year of full-time attendance).

Level 6 modules contribute 70% of the aggregate mark and Level 5 contributes 30% to the calculation of the class of the award. Classification of integrated Master’s degrees with Honours include a Level 7 component. The calculation in this case is: 50% Level 7, 30% Level 6, 20% Level 5. At least half the Level 5 modules must be studied at the University for Level 5 to be included in the calculation of the class.

All other qualifications have an overall grade determined by results in modules from the final level of study. In Master’s degrees of more than 200 credit points the final 120 points usually determine the overall grading.

Figures correct for academic year 2022-2023.

Academic profile

The University employs over 1,000 suitably qualified and experienced academic staff - 60% have PhDs in their subject field and many have professional body recognition.

Courses are taught by staff who are Professors (19%), Readers, Senior Lecturers (22%) or Lecturers (57%).

We require most academic staff to be qualified to teach in higher education: 82% hold either Postgraduate Certificates in Higher Education Practice or higher. Most academic and learning support staff (85%) are recognised as fellows of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) by Advance HE - the university sector professional body for teaching and learning. Many academic and technical staff hold other professional body designations related to their subject or scholarly practice.

The profiles of many academic staff can be found on the University’s departmental websites and give a detailed insight into the range of staffing and expertise.  The precise staffing for a course will depend on the department(s) involved and the availability and management of staff.  This is subject to change annually and is confirmed in the timetable issued at the start of the course.

Occasionally, teaching may be supplemented by suitably qualified part-time staff (usually qualified researchers) and specialist guest lecturers. In these cases, all staff are inducted, mostly through our staff development programme ‘First Steps to Teaching’. In some cases, usually for provision in one of our out-centres, Recognised University Teachers are involved, supported by the University in suitable professional development for teaching.

Figures correct for academic year 2022-2023.

Apply

Start dates

  • 28 September 2023

Fees and funding

Prices

Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland and EU Settlements Status Fees: £746.60

England, Scotland, Wales and the Islands Fees: £746.60

International Fees: £1,760.00

Fees information

Information about how to pay for a course including different payment options is available at

www.ulster.ac.uk/finance/student/tuition-fees-payments

Additional mandatory costs

It is important to remember that costs associated with accommodation, travel (including car parking charges) and normal living will need to be covered in addition to tuition fees.

Where a course has additional mandatory expenses (in addition to tuition fees) we make every effort to highlight them above. We aim to provide students with the learning materials needed to support their studies. Our libraries are a valuable resource with an extensive collection of books and journals, as well as first-class facilities and IT equipment. Computer suites and free Wi-Fi are also available on each of the campuses.

There are additional fees for graduation ceremonies, examination resits and library fines.

Students choosing a period of paid work placement or study abroad as a part of their course should be aware that there may be additional travel and living costs, as well as tuition fees.

See the tuition fees on our student guide for most up to date costs.

Disclaimer

  1. Although reasonable steps are taken to provide the programmes and services described, the University cannot guarantee the provision of any course or facility and the University may make variations to the contents or methods of delivery of courses, discontinue, merge or combine courses and introduce new courses if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary by the University. Such circumstances include (but are not limited to) industrial action, lack of demand, departure of key staff, changes in legislation or government policy including changes, if any, resulting from the UK departing the European Union, withdrawal or reduction of funding or other circumstances beyond the University’s reasonable control.
  1. If the University discontinues any courses, it will use its best endeavours to provide a suitable alternative course. In addition, courses may change during the course of study and in such circumstances the University will normally undertake a consultation process prior to any such changes being introduced and seek to ensure that no student is unreasonably prejudiced as a consequence of any such change.
  1. The University does not accept responsibility (other than through the negligence of the University, its staff or agents), for the consequences of any modification or cancellation of any course, or part of a course, offered by the University but will take into consideration the effects on individual students and seek to minimise the impact of such effects where reasonably practicable.
  1. The University cannot accept any liability for disruption to its provision of educational or other services caused by circumstances beyond its control, but the University will take all reasonable steps to minimise the resultant disruption to such services.